Grown Up
by aussiebabe290
Summary: Oneshot. Growing up didn't excuse the fact that for a long time, they grew side by side. Solar Blue Surf Academy, class of 2005, while as close as family and thick as theives, hadn't seen in each other in a long time, but the death of a loved one changed it all. Reunited at the beach, they were left to remember.


**R&R! :) xo**

* * *

"Bec!" Garry Miller called, coming out of the office with the cordless phone in his hand, covering the mouthpiece. "Bec, phone for you!"

"Who is it?"

"Angus!"

"What does he want?"

"Answer the phone and find out!"

Bec came down the stairs, shaking her head. "Honestly, you know the man just as well as I do, can't you talk to him?" she took the phone from him and Garry grinned, as she rolled her eyes. "Angus, hi. Sorry, I was upstairs".

Lifting herself onto the kitchen bench, she crossed her leg and held the phone to her ear, listening to what the man on the other end was saying. Garry watched as she nodded, reaching into the fridge to retrieve a water bottle.

But in the few seconds that it had taken him to get the water bottle out of the fridge, all colour had drained from Bec's face and her eyes were filled with tears.

"What happened?" Garry dropped the water, bottle, wrapping his arms around her. She pressed her forehead into his shoulder, the phone still glued to her ear.

"Yep. Okay. Thanks for letting me know, Angus", she gulped. "Talk to you soon. Bye".

"Bec, what happened?" he repeated, lifting her off the bench. "it's not Solar Blue, is it?" he wanted to know, remembering the kerfuffle that had gone down almost fifteen years earlier, in their very first year as coaches.

"Its Simmo- Simmo- Simmo died!"

"Oh, Bec". Garry put his arms around her, and she buried her head in his neck. He and Bec had been running Solar Blue Academy for fifteen years, but Bec had never forgotten her coach. He was the one who taught her everything she knew, and she had spent the best year of her life under his instruction. He was the one she called when she was having a bad day, and he left her with words of wisdom she used in her everyday life. "Oh, Bec, I'm sorry".

After a few moments with her head hidden in her husband's neck, Bec pulled herself out of his grip and dabbed at her face, sucking in a deep breath. "I need to tell the others. We're all going to his funeral, we have to".

She was part of the Solar Blue Academy class of 2005, one of the tightest knit groups to pass through the academy. Although Simmo had never directly said it, they all knew that their group had been his favourite. He had created a special bond with every one of the seven, making a concerted effort to go and visit them regularly. At the end of every surfing year, he returned to Blue Water to be one of the judges at the finals. He attended every one of their weddings (and was the one to give Fly away at her wedding to Heath, after the tragic passing of her own father) and was their children's beloved grandfather figure, their Uncle Simmo.

"I know", Garry said quietly, rubbing his back.

"What happened, Mum?" nine year old Aubrey wanted to know, appearing at the sliding screen door.

"Dad, what's wrong?" her twin brother Jesse wanted to know, popping up beside his sister. "Can we go and visit Grandma and Grandpa?"

"Guys, you know Uncle Simmo?" Bec said, holding the phone in her hand.

They nodded.

"He- he passed away, guys".

Aubrey gasped, throwing her arms around her mother. Jesse joined the hug, and Bec pressed kisses to the tops of their heads.

"Does this mean everyone's getting together for the funeral?" Jesse wanted to know.

Garry nodded. "Kids don't arrive at this house until the fourteenth, it's only the second. Angus will be here next week, but it doesn't really matter. Everyone's going to stay here- well, everyone that comes".

"They'll all be here", Bec said confidently.

"All our cousins, too?" Aubrey wanted to know.

"I'd imagine so, they're family". Garry held his arms out and Aubrey slid into his arms, resting her head against his chest.

"Fly!" Heath hollered, moving the phone away from his mouth. "FLYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!"

Fly thundered down the hallway, her blonde hair flying behind her. "What? What happened? What's wrong? Who's on the phone?"

"It's Bec". He shoved the phone at her.

"Fly", Bec hiccupped.

"Oh my God, what happened?"

"Fly, its Simmo- Fly, Simmo passed away".

Fly felt the colour drain from her face. "Are you serious?" she looked at Heath for conformation, and upon seeing his tiny nod, melted into his chest. "Oh my God!"

Bec was crying just as hard on the other end of the phone. "The funeral's in Blue Water on Friday".

"We'll be there", Fly cried. "We'll definitely be there".

It was Fly who broke the news to Anna, and the two cried silently down the phone for half an hour, as Anna frantically tried to find flights into Sydney. Upon finding a flight and getting off the phone with Fly, she dialled Perri's number, whose reaction was very similar.

"Are you serious?" Perri's voice was soft, and Anna just nodded, knowing full well that the girl on the other end would get the message. "Oh my God- are you going?"

"I'll be there", Anna gulped.

"We have to be there, we're his family". Perri mumbled, trying to hold back her tears. "Annie, I'll call you back later, alright?"

Anna just nodded. "Love you".

"Love you too", she said quietly.

After almost an hour of trying (unsuccessfully) to pull herself together, she dialled Matt's number.

"Hey Perri!" he said brightly when he answered. "How are you?"

"You haven't spoken to anyone else?" she guessed.

"Are you crying? Oh my God, Perri, what happened?"

"Simmo's dead, Matt".

He was silent, as he tried to ingest the news. "Are you serious?"

"Does it sound like I'm kidding?" she took a deep breath, trying to calm herself. "Bec found out this morning. We're all going".

"We'll be there", Matt promised. "Does everyone know?"

"Everyone except Edge. You've got to call him".

So after Matt got off the phone with Perri, he dialed Edge's number.

"Hey Matt!" Edge greeted cheerfully.

"Edge. We're going to Blue Water. Simmo... Simmo passed away this morning".

Edge was silent, as he let the news sink in. Holding the phone away from his ear slightly, he called to his wife. "Summer! Get out the suitcases, we're taking a trip!"

"See you on Friday?" Matt said, having heard every word.

"Definately. Bye, mate".

* * *

Throughout the week, Bec found herself staring at the photo that sat on her desk- the six teenagers and Simmo, the group that she had spent her sixteenth year with, remembering. The early too cheerful early morning call of 'rise and shine my little jelly babies!' and the way he would blow the whistle he kept hanging around his neck when he caught any of them so much as holding hands. The way he would sing along to the seventies and the eighties in the orange and white Solar Blue van, not caring where they were (as nicely as they had asked him not to, he turned up the music on the rare occasions he picked the group up from school). The way he had cried at their weddings (not that he would have ever admitted it) and claimed their children as his grandchildren.

"I'll miss you, Simmo", Bec whispered.

* * *

"Zip me up, please?" Bec came out of the bathroom, her black dress zipped up only halfway. Garry tugged the zipper up, and she picked up a brush. "I really didn't think we'd have to do this, you know? I mean, its Simmo. He's just one of those guys you think will never die".

"Like Arnie?"

"Arnie will never die; he'll be around to haunt you for the rest of your days". She grinned and he punched her gently on the shoulder, making her giggle.

"God, I can't stand Arnie".

"And yet Arnie loves you".

* * *

The reunion was one of monumental proportions. Bec and Garry were the first to arrive, with Aubrey and Jesse in tow, as they waited for people they knew.

And then Fly and Heath turned up with their brood.

"Bec!" Fly, her face already streaked with tears, threw her arms around the brunette and Bec all but lifted the tiny blonde off the ground. She smacked a kiss to Heath's cheek, as Heath encased the two of them in a hug, before slapping Garry cheerfully on the back.

"Good to see you again, mate", he said good naturedly.

"I only wish it was on better terms", Garry agreed.

For the kids, however, it was like they had never been apart. Jesse and Aubrey embraced Scott, Aden and little Bailey (who had taken after her mother, size wise), their 'cousins', smiles from ear to ear on each of the five kids. Because despite the situation, they were all together again, and that was all that mattered to the kids.

One by one, family by family, they began to trickle towards the church, bypassing the complete strangers watching in order to be reunited with their friends.

"Bec!" Anna called, and Bec bounded towards her, as fast as she could in her high heels. Embracing her in a hug, the two held onto each other for a long time.

"I'm so glad to see you", she whispered.

"I just wished the next time we all got together it'd be for something good", Anna whispered back, squeezing her even tighter. "I just… I just can't believe it".

Bec patted her baby bump gently, a small smile creeping onto her face. "It will be".

"Anna!" Matt called across the car park, leading his wife Leah and their two blonde little girls towards the group. "Bec!"

"Aubrey!" Claire and Beth called, and Aubrey and Bailey bounded towards them excitedly.

(With four girls and five boys in their unorthodox little family, Aubrey Miller felt severely outnumbered most of the time- but when she was with her partners in crime; she knew that they were even.)

By the time Edge and Summer arrived with little Faith in tow, her brown hair braided over each shoulder in a similar fashion to Aubrey's, they were reunited once again. But they still knew they were missing two more people to complete the Solar Blue class of 2005.

"Miss Sanderson", Deb said from behind her, and Bec spun around. "I suppose its Mrs Miller now, isn't it?"

Bec embraced the woman in a hug, tears leaking out of her eyes. "Oh my God, you're here. Deb, Jilly!"

"We weren't going to miss this", Jilly said, as she was hugged by Heath and Matt and Anna all at once. "I mean, I wish we didn't have to do this, but I wouldn't miss this".

"I know, I know what you mean", Edge agreed gruffly.

"Fly, don't cry!" Jilly embraced the girl who would forever be known as the baby of the group, in a hug. "No, no tears today. We're here to celebrate his life, not mourn his death".

"Simmo didn't want you to cry", Deb said, almost scoldingly, as she dabbed at her eyes. "He used to tell me that when he went, he wanted people to laugh. So make 'em laugh, Heath, make us laugh".

"Make us laugh", Perri said, squeezing his shoulder and smacking a noisy kiss to the boy's cheek.

"We'll make 'em laugh", Heath promised.

* * *

After the service, everyone gathered outside, farewelling guests and hugging Deb and Jilly (who were only in Blue Water for the service) goodbye.

"We'll definitely have to catch up soon", Perri promised.

"Where are you going?" Bec wanted to know, as Fly opened the back of the car for the kids to scramble in.

"We're off to the hotel to chuck out our bags and then we'll meet you at the house", Heath answered for her.

"No, you guys can't stay in hotels!" Garry argued. "The beach house is free for another two weeks; you can stay with me and Bec!"

"Yeah, let's stay with Aunty Bec and Uncle Garry!" Faith said brightly, gripping Perri's hand. "Come on, Aunty Perri; let's stay with Aunty Bec and Uncle Garry!"

"Look how many of us there are, I don't think we'll all fit!" Perri (the self-proclaimed fun aunty) argued with a smile, squeezing Faith's hand. "It's alright, Bec-"

"Perri". Bec stared at her old roommate and she caved, breaking into a grin. "We've already reorganised the house for everyone to fit".

"Yeah!" Jesse said brightly. "We moved some stuff so everyone gets a room! Me and Aubrey helped, didn't we Mum?"

"They helped, come on Perri!" Garry laughed. "things just like that just happen every day!" he grinned, knowing full well that both Jesse and Aubrey were the first to help both him and Bec out with anything to do with Solar Blue and the house in general.

Edge laughed, slapping Garry on the back. "We're in, who knows the next time those kids are going to help?"

"We help!" Aubrey said indignantly, frowning at her father.

"Okay", she said finally. "As long as everyone else stays, too. We can't have a proper Solar Blue reunion without everyone".

It was unanimous, as they all piled into cars (the kids and the adults swapping round to have a good chat before they reached the boarding house). It was only a short drive to the beach house, but they made the most of it.

* * *

"We're here!" Beth Carroll bellowed, sticking her head out of the window of Perri's car, tugging Faith and Aubrey out after her, hitting the sand and running down to the water.

"Sunscreen!" Anna yelled after them, as she unbuckled three year old Sam from his car seat. Jesse, giggling, took Sam by the hand, leading him towards the sand.

"Come on Sammy", he said brightly.

Once they hit the beach, it was like they had never left; running and shrieking up and down the sand. As the waves crashed against their ankles, they brought about scarily similar memories for their parents and their first days at Blue Water Beach.

"Edgely, step away from that barbecue", Heath warned, holding up the spare tongs. "Everyone is actually hungry; we actually want to eat tonight".

Edge glared. "That was-"

"Don't even say it", Perri warned from the door, as she carried out tomato and barbecue sauce. "Annie, can you get the bread?"

"It was a perfectly edible meal", Bec defended.

"Bec, it was horrible", Matt said bluntly. "If we all recall, you were the one who called your mother to rescue us".

Garry took the tongs from Edge, rescuing the sausages from his every move. "I'll do it, mate".

"That stove was temperamental", Edge defended.

"Don't worry, Edge, Bec updated the stove", Perri soothed with a grin.

"You know, Bec can actually cook now", Garry said to make conversation, and Fly started to giggle. "No, it's true!"

"Edge still can't", Summer said cheerfully.

The fact that Bec and Edge couldn't cook had become a running joke by the very first night in Blue Water, for the class of 2005. Upon returning, Bec had honed her cooking skills to pasta and chops, leaving the rest to Garry. But as the years went on, her cooking skills had improved (taking many lessons from her husband), while Edge's had stayed the same. And still, almost twenty years later, they were laughed at.

Heath started to chuckle. "Hey Summer, I like you. I mean, I've always liked you but I like you a lot more now".

Summer beamed. "Thanks, Heath".

"Zip it, Carroll".

"Dad, is dinner almost ready?" Jesse wanted to know. "I'm starving!"

"Almost", Garry called back.

"You're always starving!" Perri laughed.

Bec leant over the veranda, calling to the kids. "Come on guys, head on up and shake off, we wouldn't want Jesse to die of starvation".

"That'd be a problem", Aubrey said cheekily, and Bec threw a towel at her, biting back her smile.

"Holy God, she's a mini Bec", Heath voiced.

"Yeah, and doesn't Jesse know it", Edge chuckled.

"Hey Bec, can Aubrey cook?" Pete said innocently, and Bec glared as Heath high fived him.

"Anna, you got a good one here", Perri complimented.

Garry grinned, as he turned the sausages over on the hotplate once more. While they considered themselves family (a big, unofficial family), he knew that the bond that the class of 2005 had was beyond anything he or their partners could comprehend. He saw the grin that lit up Bec's whole face whenever any of them phoned the house, and the way her eyes sparkled whenever she met up with them. The way that the four women still giggled like teenage girls when they got together, and the way that Heath, Edge and Matt were still so ridiculously protective of the girls, just like they had been almost twenty years earlier.

While it was like they had never been apart.

* * *

The week that they spend in Blue Water was one of the longest and yet the shortest at the same time. It was a week where they did absolutely nothing and yet everything at all; catching up on the lives they were missing and remembering the times they had had at the beach. Where they would wake up to the sun and the surf, their kids running around all day before crashing hard at night.

"The water's good for Sam", Anna commented, as she came down the stairs, a hand on her belly. "He's absolutely worn out, but he loves it".

"they're all worn out", Perri said with a smile, having read the last bedtime story (even though most claimed they were too old for a bedtime story, Perri was the 'fun aunt' and was able to be talked into almost anything) half an hour before.

Garry started to chuckle. "When Aubrey and Jess were younger- I'm talking really little, like two and three- they'd spend almost the whole day out on the beach, running up and down and trying to keep up with the kids at training. In the end they'd just crash and Bec would fight with them at bath time to try and get the sand out of their ears. Bedtime was never an issue here".

"It would have been like watching you and Joe when you were babies!" Fly giggled. "God, are we really becoming them?"

"Who?" Heath said, genuinely confused.

"Those old ones who sit around and reminisce through the eyes of their kids". Leah nodded. "I think we are".

"We aren't even old!" Bec gasped. "Perri, I don't want to be old".

"I'll iron your wrinkles for you", Perri offered, and Bec hurled a pillow across the room with precision aim. "Hey!"

"She's still got a better aim than Heath", Fly said appreciatively, making Leah and Pete snicker.

"Do you know how many times your husband held my pillow hostage?" Heath said loudly to Summer, hands on his hips. "More times than I can even remember!"

"It was a regular occurrence", Matt relayed to Pete and Leah. "Apparently he didn't register that he wouldn't be getting it back, every single time he chucked it across the room".

Their laughter rang late into the night, the original Solar Blue seven and their respective partners relishing in the memories they had made, together and apart.

* * *

Bec was awake long before the sun, staring up at the ceiling. Apart from Garry's deep breathing beside her, the house was silent. Sighing heavily, she glanced at the clock, knowing that the chances of anyone being awake in the next three hours were slim to none.

Kicking off her half of the blankets, she padded out into the hallway, before poking her head into the kids' room. Jesse and Aubrey were asleep on the floor, sprawled out in their usual fashion, with Faith tucked up in a ball. Bailey was lying flat as a board between her two brothers, with Sam's head resting on her feet. Claire was crashed face down beside Aubrey, with Beth lying on her stomach beside Jesse. Scott had taken the bed, with Aden pressed up against the wall.

Bec smiled at the sight, the way they sprawled out on the floor reminiscent of the many nights she had crashed out on the lounge room floor with her Solar Blue six. Falling asleep with half a bowl of popcorn resting on the floor, a pile of tangled limbs, where Deb and Simmo would find them in the morning.

Heading down the stairs, she made her way silently into the kitchen, to start the first pot of coffee for the morning (Garry would generally gulp one down before heading onto the beach with the kids for training, while Bec would take her time, sipping it and savouring the hot beverage). Taking a seat in the kitchen, she waited, wide awake, to see who the next person awake would be.

"What are you doing awake this early?" Edge yawned, coming out of the room to find Bec sitting at the kitchen table, nursing her second mug of coffee. "It's not like you're a morning person or anything!"

"Actually, I've gotten better. Getting up at five every day for the last sixteen years helped somewhat". She gave him a smile. "Do you guys need to go home today?"

"We've seen the calendar, Bec", he said gently, pouring himself a mug of coffee and taking a seat beside her. "The kids are arriving in a few days, if we don't get out of here now I don't think we ever will".

She giggled, sipping her coffee. "Remember that last day in Blue Water?"

"Absolutely". He nodded, and Bec grinned. "That was the best morning I think we'd had all year".

"I'll get Anna, Matt and Perri if you go and wake up Fly and Heath".

"Are you serious?" his eyes widened, and he took a long sip of his coffee as she nodded.

"We're all here. It's been a long time since we've all been together- since Sam was born, I think. That was the last time we were all together". She smiled again and Edge returned the grin, standing up and setting his mug down on the table.

"Rise and shine my little jelly babies!" Edge's eyes shone, as he headed towards the stairs. Bec, a grin on her face, moved down the hallway to open the door of the spare room Perri was sleeping in.

"Perri", she said quietly, stepping beside the blow up mattress. "Hey, Perri".

"Mmm?" she murmured.

"Perri!"

"Whassa matter?" the blonde murmured, cracking one eye open.

"Get up; we've got something important to do".

"Now?" Perri groaned.

"Yes now! Come on, get up!"

Leaving Perri grumbling, she moved into the next room, finding Matt face down in his pillow, Leah curled up into a ball in his side.

"Rebecca Sanderson, have you lost your mind?" he croaked, after a good four minutes of not so gentle prodding.

"That's Miller to you- get up!"

"What, now?"

"Yes now! Come on, get up! Edge'll meet you in the kitchen, I've got to go and wake up Anna". Leaving Matt grumbling and groaning, she moved onto the room Anna and Pete had crashed in. "oh Anna", she cooed.

But, much like she had the whole time they were at Solar Blue, Anna ignored the wakeup call and continued to sleep.

(How they had put her in charge of waking up Heath in the morning was absolutely beyond Bec's comprehension.)

"Annie", Bec whispered, a little louder. "Annie, wake up. It's important".

"Are the kids okay?" she murmured out of habit.

"The kids are fine, Anna, they're asleep. Come on, there's something we need to do".

Opening an eye and squinting at Bec, she groaned. "Can't we do it later?"

"No, no, come on. We have to do it now". Holding out her hand to help her out of bed, Bec pressed a finger to her lips. "Shhh, don't wake Pete".

The two padded out into the kitchen, Anna yawning sleepily, where they met the rest of their friends. Edge was trying to push Heath out the door, as Fly attempted to drink the dregs of Bec's coffee.

"Why are we up at this ungodly hour?" Heath yawned, as Edge shoved him towards the door. "Seriously, this is ridiculous".

"Why is it always before sunrise?" Perri yawned, rubbing her eyes. "I mean, it's not even six!"

"Shut up everyone", Edge said cheerfully. "So, Bec and I were thinking-"

"Here we go. This is going to be some ridiculous thing where we-"

"If you all recall, that was Perri", Bec interrupted, glaring at Matt. "As Edge was saying, if you all remember correctly on the day we left Blue Water-"

"We stepped into the future together", Edge said, taking over.

"Are you freaking serious?" Heath yawned. "We're out here at this ridiculous hour to step into the future together?"

"Bec, I don't know if you missed the memo, but we're very much in the future right now", Anna said with a yawn large enough to give everyone a view of her tonsils. "I mean, we've all got kids, most of us are married-"

"Remember why we're here?" she said. "I mean, who knows?"

"That's why we thought we'd repeat history and all this", Edge nodded. "Because really, we don't even know what's going to happen. We haven't been together in three years, since Sam was born. How long is it going to be until we're all together again?"

Perri put a hand on Anna's small baby bump, and Edge nodded.

"Okay, we'll be together to meet Anna's bub, but that's not the point", Bec countered. "Look how far we've all come since we left Solar Blue. It's been almost twenty years since we left".

Bec and Edge were silent for a moment, letting it sink into their friends.

"They're right", Matt said finally, reaching for Perri's hand. "Let's step into the future together".

It wasn't like the first time, where they all bounded out of the doors of the surf club, hand in hand. Linking hands- Matt's hand in Perri's, Perri's hand in Heath's, Heath's hand in Fly's, Fly's hand in Anna's, Anna's hand in Bec's and Bec's hand in Edge's- they made their way, clad in pyjamas, down the soft white sand to the edge of the ocean.

And suddenly, with a burst of energy their sleepy bodies hadn't had up until that point, they took off, clutching hands, into the icy morning ocean, shrieks emitting their lips.

They didn't keep track of how long they stayed down on the beach. All they knew was that they splashed around in the surf with the innocence their sixteen year old selves had on that final night in Blue Water, nineteen years ago. They laughed and joked about things they had almost forgotten ("hey Edge, remember Mr and Mrs G White?" "DON'T even talk about it. DON'T YOU DARE".), relishing in the final few moments together before having to head back into the reality of their everyday lives.

After they were well and truly chilled to the bone and the sun was high in the sky, they headed back to the beach house, to find their respective partners and children waiting for them on the grass.

"Mum!" Aubrey said indignantly. "How come you didn't wake us up?"

Bec grabbed her daughter into a hug, making the girl squeal as her mother's wet pyjamas and skin touched her own. Laughing, Aubrey tried to wriggle away.

"Can we stay a little bit longer, Daddy?" Faith almost begged, as she cautiously stepped towards her father.

"I'd love to", Edge said honestly, putting his arms around Faith and laughing as she shivered, "But we're going to be back soon enough".

"As soon as Aunty Anna has this bubba, we'll all be together again", Perri nodded, patting Anna's baby bump.

"For longer?" Bailey said hopefully.

"Definitely". Heath nodded enthusiastically, squeezing Aubrey's hand.

"We'll be together after that, too", Summer said, taking Edge's hand. "Because Faith's going to be a big sister, and there's going to be another bub in this family".

As the excitement broke through the group, with cheers and shrieks of congratulations, they couldn't help but wonder if everything significant in their lives would take place in Blue Water.

Because everything had.

Blue Water was where their lives began. Where they grew up and grew together, their ties tangled for eternity within the small beachside town. Where they made memories worth remembering, and memories that were best buried under the heap. Bec had stated many times, that once you were part of a Solar Blue clan, you were part of that clan forever.

"**Growing up doesn't change the fact that for a long time we grew side by side; our roots will always be tangled. I'm glad for that." **

**Ally Condie, **_**Matched**_


End file.
